Xabi Alonso's Chelsea Win: Cole Palmer's Performance and Injury Update

Xabi Alonso’s Chelsea reign opened with a win and a scare.

Cole Palmer, the club’s creative heartbeat, limped through the closing stages of a 3–2 victory over Fulham, sparking an anxious murmur around Stamford Bridge before he was finally withdrawn. Given his recent history, the sight was enough to make Chelsea fans brace for bad news.

This time, they can exhale.

Alonso calms injury fears

Palmer is coming off a year that stalled badly. Injuries wrecked his rhythm, cost him momentum, and ultimately saw him miss out on England’s World Cup squad. So when he started stretching and grimacing late on against Fulham, the concern was instant and understandable.

Alonso moved quickly to shut that down.

Speaking to Sky Sports after the match, the new Chelsea manager explained that Palmer was simply feeling the effects of a heavy workload rather than suffering a fresh setback.

The 22-year-old, like several of Chelsea’s senior players, is still building back up to full match sharpness and coping with extended minutes again. Cramp, not crisis.

Any doubts about his level were answered long before the final whistle.

‘We need a great Cole’

Alonso’s first competitive game in charge brought a chaotic, entertaining 3–2 win, and Palmer sat right at the centre of it. The Spaniard’s assessment of his playmaker was as glowing as the performance itself.

“I have really enjoyed his performance,” Alonso told Sky Sports after the game. “He has played with responsibility, with maturity, but as well with freedom.

“So that’s very important for me that we get the best from Cole when he takes this role, but he feels the flow where he has to be involved in different positions. So happy for him. (If) we want to have a good team, we need a great Cole.”

Responsibility. Maturity. Freedom. It’s a demanding brief, but Palmer looked comfortable carrying it, drifting into pockets, linking play, and driving Chelsea forward in the kind of all-action display that defines a modern attacking leader.

The cramp was almost a compliment. He had emptied the tank.

‘Best one on the pitch by a mile’

Inside the dressing room, the verdict was even more emphatic.

Morgan Rogers, a longtime friend and now a new teammate at Chelsea, has seen Palmer up close for years. His view of the Fulham display was blunt and unfiltered.

“Yeah, well, everyone knows how good he is,” Rogers said in his August 24 media session. “Obviously, he had a difficult year with injuries and stuff last year.

“You can see in his eyes in preseason and in training that he’s ready this year and he’s ready to prove people wrong. You saw that with that performance, best one on the pitch by a mile, and that’s what he does.”

That line will resonate with supporters who watched Palmer dictate the tempo and set the tone. For a player who spent last season fighting his own body, the idea that he is “ready to prove people wrong” gives Chelsea’s campaign an extra edge.

Alonso wants a “great Cole.” Rogers says he’s already the standout. Palmer himself now has the platform, the trust, and, crucially, a clean bill of health.

If cramp is the only thing that can stop him right now, what happens when he’s fully up to speed?